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October 1, 2017

Aid, support pour in from West Bengal

<!– /11440465/Dna_Article_Middle_300x250_BTF –>The Centre has informed the Supreme Court that Rohingya Muslims are illegal immigrants and have links with terror outfits. But West Bengal Chief Minister Mamata Banerjee has taken a different stand on the issue, saying it would be unfair to call all Rohingya Muslims terrorists.BSF officials at the Indo-Bangladesh border have been asked to be extra alert to prevent any infiltration. “There are stretches where infiltration can take place. Besides, there are several pockets in Bengal where the condition is conducive for them to get shelter,” said a senior BSF official.Officially, there are 230 Rohingya Muslims in West Bengal kept in various prisons, but sources said that there could be some under private protection. The police and the administration, especially in bordering districts such as Cooch Behar, Malda and North 24 Parganas have been put on high alert, also to track those who have already crossed over.Buoyed by Mamata’s stand, Muslim organisations in Kolkata have taken out several rallies and held public meetings in solidarity with Rohingyas.Md Kamruzzaman, general secretary, All Bengal Minority Youth Federation, led several such rallies. “The intention is to put pressure on the Myanmar government so that the atrocities on Rohingya Muslims end. We will soon write to Mamata to disallow the Myanmar consulate to function here in Kolkata till Rohingya Muslims in Myanmar are accepted as citizens of the country,” Kamruzzaman said.Muslims of bordering areas are collecting money to buy relief materials for those in Bangladesh’s Cox’s Bazar area. “We will set off after some days. We are aiming to collect at least Rs 3 lakh. Once representatives of our organisation reach there, they will find out what is required the most — food, clothes or medicines — and will buy those. The Bangladesh government has provided shelter to about eight lakh Rohingya Muslims. Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina had said that the country could be poor, but if it could feed 16 million people, it could also feed another eight lakh.Her Minister of State for Foreign Affairs Mohammed Shahriar Alam said in Kolkata that Rohingyas in Bangladesh and other parts of the world should be taken back and given recognition by the Myanmar government because the help which Bangladesh was providing could not go on forever.